Artist’s statement
Lily-Joy's work is a representative of the modern day transgression of the domestic space and object. Working through a vast variety of mediums, her work distributes research from relational aesthetics and the sensory and communicative experience that comes into play when the spectator is facing the artwork. Using textually heighten fabrics and raw materials Lily-Joy's workings compel the viewer to touch and immerse themselves fully into the artwork allowing them to become more than just the audience.
Merging the aspects of our lived experiences with the use of domestic spaces and objects, I am physically morphing, objectifying and altering the social framings of them. By enhancing the sensory and relational languages that are created within the work I am looking for the communicative presence that is found between the art object and the spectator. I am looking to transform the inner workings of a space and/or object to then build a new reality, the relationship made and the relationship that is already socially bonded; the interactive and participatory factors allow the viewer to become part of the work, as art is about communication it becomes art for all. I am doing this through use of domestic spaces and objects I am taking a space that invites the participate in to experience a new version of itself by adding material and texture through a variety of mediums.
18 Month Plan
18 Month Plan Updated: Short version
I have an internship with Pelham Art PR Communications in London lined up for the end of June/July for three months, so prior to that I will be moving out of Surrey, into a property myself and Alice have been organising and renovating for the last few months, we have invested into the Foxton area and will use the commute to kingscross as the everyday travel.
Whilst doing the internship and learning the skills and knowledge from the firm I will be searching for other jobs in sales for art or working in a gallery, and finding other relating jobs within the London area or in Cambridge..
For the future, I would love to find investors then eventually start up an arts community for kids/schools/studios that can be rented out for more reasonable prices and that would host events for local areas and others, similar to Lewisham Arthouse where it gives back, but also one that will turn a profit to keep giving. I do believe by learning from an internship and developing more networking skills and contacts through the years that this will be possible, not necessary in England but around Europe etc.
I look forward to seeing what everything brings!
I have an internship with Pelham Art PR Communications in London lined up for the end of June/July for three months, so prior to that I will be moving out of Surrey, into a property myself and Alice have been organising and renovating for the last few months, we have invested into the Foxton area and will use the commute to kingscross as the everyday travel.
Whilst doing the internship and learning the skills and knowledge from the firm I will be searching for other jobs in sales for art or working in a gallery, and finding other relating jobs within the London area or in Cambridge..
For the future, I would love to find investors then eventually start up an arts community for kids/schools/studios that can be rented out for more reasonable prices and that would host events for local areas and others, similar to Lewisham Arthouse where it gives back, but also one that will turn a profit to keep giving. I do believe by learning from an internship and developing more networking skills and contacts through the years that this will be possible, not necessary in England but around Europe etc.
I look forward to seeing what everything brings!
18 month plan
Emerging Artists UK group: For me, I feel quite lucky to be in the position I am in currently with my group of artists I have set up. For us especially we will continue to make show together once we have all graduated as we all have London as a common ground for us to exhibit and continue to develop our work and network to higher places. Our group has exhibited 3 shows so far, beginning with the Lacey Contemporary in Nottinghill, then to Camberwell at the Flying Dutchman. From January we are exhibiting at Lewisham Arthouse and then in March we are organising our end of year show in London at the barge house at the OXO tower. It is such a great opportunity to work as such a strong group as we all participate and understand our roles within the team. For us, it would be an amazing thing to continue to present ourselves as a group and if separately support each other doing so. I think our best plan as a group will be to do shows every few months/half a year so we can improve our personal work as artists so each expression of our work is getting better and better. I would love to arrange an exhibition in Berlin as the art community is so strong there and well appreciated, it would also branch our networks out further which is always a good thing. For me, organising is my skill and location the gallery or space and sorting the details, along with press and funding I manage the group then that’s where we work as a team doing all the planning and working out the best possible options for us. So as group I will continue to represent us as artists and promote us.
As an individual, I have many options which I am toying with, there is teaching and working with children through schools teaching art/design or to all ages; I love to help so working in a community a variety of people would be ideal. I also want to work with teenagers with mental health issues as that has always been something I have felt strongly about, ideally I would do 6 months to a year working in a half-way house for those who feel abandoned or alone and being someone to listen and help in any way possible. Whilst doing that, the possibility of doing an open teaching course while doing this would be amazing then once the course is over I would have that qualification to use in the future. I think for me, the thing I love most about art is the curation side to it; working in a gallery would be a good choice for me as I could work closely with artists progressing at every stage. I would learn a lot through this and network further in London ideally. I have a lot of contacts in London so I keep in contact with them for future ventures. London is where it is at so renting there and working and doing charity work would be a dream then developing from there into a full time job relating to the art scene.
I had some work experience in a PR firm during august but had to cut it short due to a family member being unwell. However that experience was something I did really enjoy and adapt quickly to; I think for me to flourish is to work with a PR sense of style but in the art world so at a gallery or a representative of an art or space. An artist’s space or platform for artists would be really relevant and it would mean I am learning about the upcoming spaces and finding those who would complement and emphasis them and their artwork in that space. So now the time is to apply for experience for next year and find places for interns or work experience for me to get influenced by.
I think now is the key time to make the steps needed for a future within the art world, whether it is a space, platform, and gallery or interning somewhere. I love selling and promoting so finding work in the PR sector would develop my skills further before stepping into something else. This all will keep me involved and working hard with my group of artists I put together, I represent them now, but on such a minor level so I want to step it to eventually a known level and meet others who can join and one day be a representative of a collective of artists known around the UK and more. I think starting small is always the way to go then develop and keep finding new ways to promote and interest others an always keep the passion alive for it. My practise as an artist is something as well that I will continue to work on in my own time and still put work out on social media and my websites I have made for us and myself. Working locally for solo shows and London too but mostly I think the best plan for me is to take one year to get myself organised and help others, learn the way to present and represent those better than from there get into the industry and begin to make a name for myself. It is always about trying and getting influence and enjoying your practice which I truly think for our group and myself will be a steady road, just need to make it happen.
Emerging Artists UK group: For me, I feel quite lucky to be in the position I am in currently with my group of artists I have set up. For us especially we will continue to make show together once we have all graduated as we all have London as a common ground for us to exhibit and continue to develop our work and network to higher places. Our group has exhibited 3 shows so far, beginning with the Lacey Contemporary in Nottinghill, then to Camberwell at the Flying Dutchman. From January we are exhibiting at Lewisham Arthouse and then in March we are organising our end of year show in London at the barge house at the OXO tower. It is such a great opportunity to work as such a strong group as we all participate and understand our roles within the team. For us, it would be an amazing thing to continue to present ourselves as a group and if separately support each other doing so. I think our best plan as a group will be to do shows every few months/half a year so we can improve our personal work as artists so each expression of our work is getting better and better. I would love to arrange an exhibition in Berlin as the art community is so strong there and well appreciated, it would also branch our networks out further which is always a good thing. For me, organising is my skill and location the gallery or space and sorting the details, along with press and funding I manage the group then that’s where we work as a team doing all the planning and working out the best possible options for us. So as group I will continue to represent us as artists and promote us.
As an individual, I have many options which I am toying with, there is teaching and working with children through schools teaching art/design or to all ages; I love to help so working in a community a variety of people would be ideal. I also want to work with teenagers with mental health issues as that has always been something I have felt strongly about, ideally I would do 6 months to a year working in a half-way house for those who feel abandoned or alone and being someone to listen and help in any way possible. Whilst doing that, the possibility of doing an open teaching course while doing this would be amazing then once the course is over I would have that qualification to use in the future. I think for me, the thing I love most about art is the curation side to it; working in a gallery would be a good choice for me as I could work closely with artists progressing at every stage. I would learn a lot through this and network further in London ideally. I have a lot of contacts in London so I keep in contact with them for future ventures. London is where it is at so renting there and working and doing charity work would be a dream then developing from there into a full time job relating to the art scene.
I had some work experience in a PR firm during august but had to cut it short due to a family member being unwell. However that experience was something I did really enjoy and adapt quickly to; I think for me to flourish is to work with a PR sense of style but in the art world so at a gallery or a representative of an art or space. An artist’s space or platform for artists would be really relevant and it would mean I am learning about the upcoming spaces and finding those who would complement and emphasis them and their artwork in that space. So now the time is to apply for experience for next year and find places for interns or work experience for me to get influenced by.
I think now is the key time to make the steps needed for a future within the art world, whether it is a space, platform, and gallery or interning somewhere. I love selling and promoting so finding work in the PR sector would develop my skills further before stepping into something else. This all will keep me involved and working hard with my group of artists I put together, I represent them now, but on such a minor level so I want to step it to eventually a known level and meet others who can join and one day be a representative of a collective of artists known around the UK and more. I think starting small is always the way to go then develop and keep finding new ways to promote and interest others an always keep the passion alive for it. My practise as an artist is something as well that I will continue to work on in my own time and still put work out on social media and my websites I have made for us and myself. Working locally for solo shows and London too but mostly I think the best plan for me is to take one year to get myself organised and help others, learn the way to present and represent those better than from there get into the industry and begin to make a name for myself. It is always about trying and getting influence and enjoying your practice which I truly think for our group and myself will be a steady road, just need to make it happen.
What?
What is the touch in art? Can you express that moment paint touches the canvas? Touch your cheek with the outside of your hand and feel the softness and curve to your face, behind is a gentleness that sweeps across your skin, this tenderness is echoed from the self. In parallel to abstract art, the sentiment behind the brushstroke is fully reflected onto the canvas. Nevertheless there is a caliginosity behind many artists, those who’s reflection upon the self is formed through twisted depth of light and shade, made through gesture to create works that scream from the inside.
What is the touch in art? Can you express that moment paint touches the canvas? Touch your cheek with the outside of your hand and feel the softness and curve to your face, behind is a gentleness that sweeps across your skin, this tenderness is echoed from the self. In parallel to abstract art, the sentiment behind the brushstroke is fully reflected onto the canvas. Nevertheless there is a caliginosity behind many artists, those who’s reflection upon the self is formed through twisted depth of light and shade, made through gesture to create works that scream from the inside.
This sensory experience is something I am creating through the textural and gestural layers of material and paint I use; the heightened senses you have as you feel a piece of art is relational, social and communicative. You experience art to understand it, you delve into its narrative and become a part of it. My practice is about that side to experiencing an image, the physical and participatory factor of spectatorship. The perceptive, the visual and the somatic experience that the touch and materiality can bring.
This sensory experience is something I am creating through the textural and gestural layers of material and paint I use; the heightened senses you have as you feel a piece of art is relational, social and communicative. You experience art to understand it, you delve into its narrative and become a part of it. My practice is about that side to experiencing an image, the physical and participatory factor of spectatorship. The perceptive, the visual and the somatic experience that the touch and materiality can bring.
Commoditization
Statement for Dissertation
Commoditization comes hand in hand living in a capitalist society, art as a commodity has always been attractive for those who can afford it. However the importance of art can be lost when consumed by the art market. If art becomes one with the market it loses its ability to be that substance of representation of economic, political and mainstream culture. The rich set the point to where they want art to go, if money guides us, where is the artist freedom in that?
‘There is no such thing as a pure artist because purity of artistic practise in the modern art market would most likely incur the wrath of that great capitalist tradition, ‘market freedom’ the freedom that equates to artists as ‘freedom to starve’.
The idea that some artists use the tactics of money to pry and succeed to their advantage, while other artists take that idea very seriously and only create for the significance of art and the empowerment it brings. To feed the market or to stave. How the market can be played and the integrity of artists.
The Di Vinci’s and the Michelangelo’s of the past were not brands, work was bought and sold but it was based on what was considered the artists merit. What the modern art market has done is build brands like Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons. These artistic brands are commodities in themselves based on perceived cultural worth and have become nonstop and self-perpetuating.
The transcendent expression of transcendental things.
Commoditization comes hand in hand living in a capitalist society, art as a commodity has always been attractive for those who can afford it. However the importance of art can be lost when consumed by the art market. If art becomes one with the market it loses its ability to be that substance of representation of economic, political and mainstream culture. The rich set the point to where they want art to go, if money guides us, where is the artist freedom in that?
‘There is no such thing as a pure artist because purity of artistic practise in the modern art market would most likely incur the wrath of that great capitalist tradition, ‘market freedom’ the freedom that equates to artists as ‘freedom to starve’.
The idea that some artists use the tactics of money to pry and succeed to their advantage, while other artists take that idea very seriously and only create for the significance of art and the empowerment it brings. To feed the market or to stave. How the market can be played and the integrity of artists.
The Di Vinci’s and the Michelangelo’s of the past were not brands, work was bought and sold but it was based on what was considered the artists merit. What the modern art market has done is build brands like Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons. These artistic brands are commodities in themselves based on perceived cultural worth and have become nonstop and self-perpetuating.
The transcendent expression of transcendental things.
- The idea of art being a commodity
- The value of art > has it dispersed or is it reinvented
- The purity of an artist has be formed to sell, the traditional sense of art, particularly painting has been altered to change the sense of ‘masterpiece’
- Conformity > generating artwork > art market
Questions
Summary of year 2
Artist Statement
My work explore the idea of the touch, the emancipation of gestural freedom, in sync with shape, colour and form. I am looking at the means of painting in its most basic formation. The physical connection between paint and canvas through the being and artist and how it portrays a message through it. With geometric abstraction in mind I am looking at the way a line or mark can take focus of an image in a minimalist style, and how colour can alter our perception and understanding of a work of art.
Summary
Beginning with figurative abstraction I focused on the body and features of the human form, twisting morphing them to create something with more emotion to it, I would paint, draw and experiment with materials and different mediums to create an image with did not make sense at first glance to the viewer. With Francis Bacon as my inspiration I found myself lifted with the movement of the brush, sweeping across the faces I made to transform them into something else. It reflected the self, the emotions we have and store. I created works of which maybe at times I did not see subject matter or were created just for the sake of art. From here I developed my practise into shape, the forms of people I made were undone and looked at from a different angle. A person would become a list of shapes and gestures, line marks and splodges of colour adding up into a whole at the end.
I thought the most logical step next was to concentrate on a different side of subject matter, rather than the being but the architecture that surrounds us, the exteriors and interiors that make up our capitals, still with the formations of shape in mind. I explore geometric abstraction and what came of it in relation to buildings. Find works of art that related and showed a minimalist sense of view. Artists like Sol Lewitt and Mary Weatherford inspired me to use the line work and movement of the brush to remake these famous images we all knew and turn them into their simplistic forms.
From here I started looking deeper into the idea of the line, the touch of the brush in comparison of emotion and meaning. Going back to Francis Bacon and his strength and almost hatred and sheer darkness behind his touch of the brush, you compare it to someone like Sol Lewitt where the fluidness runs through it. I wanted to make work that mirrored my sense of practise and something that would evoke emotion to the viewer, as well as them trying to read the narrative of the imagery.
It became more and more apparent to me that I was fascinated by this touch in art, the intimacy behind the work and gestural freedom it created. Robert Ryman and Jen Jenson show this in their work, the build-up of textures and layers that show the uncovering of the pentimento of the artwork. The narratives underneath, the hidden messages left behind that all add to the final reading of the work. I found the way I paint start to change and focus of the simplest touch and mark I make, to focus of the texture and way the movement reflects its. Looking at colour, the way the muted colours I use add to the emphasis I am trying to create, this movement and freedom is what abstraction is about, the lightness or heavy handedness comes through on to the canvas. It shows what the artist is about, it uncovers a truth where it cannot always be seen. This magic touch of the paint to the canvas is how you see and read the pictorial plane to digest and understand. I feel my work has developed from the outcome of the work, trying to portray something on large scale without subject matter to the basic fundamentals of painting and the meaning of the stroke. The minimalist marks and gestures I create will emulate the meaning of the work I had before and putting it into a new light and different way of understand why I painted it.
This exploration of materiality and experimentation I love, I am constantly make work to which are all different, how I touch the page each time is drawn from within, anything you create in art is personal, it is subjective to the viewer and a revelation of the maker.
I thought the most logical step next was to concentrate on a different side of subject matter, rather than the being but the architecture that surrounds us, the exteriors and interiors that make up our capitals, still with the formations of shape in mind. I explore geometric abstraction and what came of it in relation to buildings. Find works of art that related and showed a minimalist sense of view. Artists like Sol Lewitt and Mary Weatherford inspired me to use the line work and movement of the brush to remake these famous images we all knew and turn them into their simplistic forms.
From here I started looking deeper into the idea of the line, the touch of the brush in comparison of emotion and meaning. Going back to Francis Bacon and his strength and almost hatred and sheer darkness behind his touch of the brush, you compare it to someone like Sol Lewitt where the fluidness runs through it. I wanted to make work that mirrored my sense of practise and something that would evoke emotion to the viewer, as well as them trying to read the narrative of the imagery.
It became more and more apparent to me that I was fascinated by this touch in art, the intimacy behind the work and gestural freedom it created. Robert Ryman and Jen Jenson show this in their work, the build-up of textures and layers that show the uncovering of the pentimento of the artwork. The narratives underneath, the hidden messages left behind that all add to the final reading of the work. I found the way I paint start to change and focus of the simplest touch and mark I make, to focus of the texture and way the movement reflects its. Looking at colour, the way the muted colours I use add to the emphasis I am trying to create, this movement and freedom is what abstraction is about, the lightness or heavy handedness comes through on to the canvas. It shows what the artist is about, it uncovers a truth where it cannot always be seen. This magic touch of the paint to the canvas is how you see and read the pictorial plane to digest and understand. I feel my work has developed from the outcome of the work, trying to portray something on large scale without subject matter to the basic fundamentals of painting and the meaning of the stroke. The minimalist marks and gestures I create will emulate the meaning of the work I had before and putting it into a new light and different way of understand why I painted it.
This exploration of materiality and experimentation I love, I am constantly make work to which are all different, how I touch the page each time is drawn from within, anything you create in art is personal, it is subjective to the viewer and a revelation of the maker.
Below is the beginning of the year statement of work
Artist ProposalMy aim is to show the human figure in a new way, in a contemporary figurative manor that lets me express how I see them. Where the distorted is the norm and the abnormalities come second nature. There is a beauty in the ugly, the strange and new, as humans we are attracted to strange, we wants to explore its means. I want to show this within my body of work; that classicism, although beautiful, isn’t the only way to portray the human figure. The everyday face and body is transformed with the intensity of colour, shape and form. The brushstrokes are harder, faster and change the way the image is read. I work with paint, often experimenting with clay and 3D aspects, seeing how it alters the narrative and how the audience perceives the work. Influenced by Francis Bacon and his distorted figures, right up to the contemporary artists who inspire me with their figurative, surrealists and fluid styles. The art itself is not distorted, our understanding of visual reality is challenged, and it is within us that the distortion occurs, to understand the effect that the distortion of norms has on an observer.
Key words: figurative, surrealism, distortion, narrative, expression, composition, colour, texture Project work
Developing the idea of surrealism, from my previous project, into distortion. Looking at the abnormalities within an image. I began by looking at chaos and violence within an image that is created by the brushstroke and composition. How intensity of colour can alter everything. I wanted to look at the grotesque, how we are fascinated with the strange. I have flowed more into a figurative style of the human figure, still looking at distortion but in a new means, less of the grotesque but more of the materiality and texture it creates. Studying artists such as Cecily Brown, Nenad Zilic and Luca sara Roza. The idea of control, and chaos in the way an artist paints their masterpiece, the notion of reality, how it is transformed through the conscious and subconscious. Surrealists use this to create forms that confuse and entice the audience. With this figurative style I have embodied a new technique where colour and strength of the brushstroke controls the piece. Using negative space as a part of the work, size, and material to play with the idea of form. What does a portrait mean to me?The question ‘what is a portrait?’ is a difficult one to answer. You could spend hours reading a range of texts and watching interviews with highly acclaimed art critics, and still not have discovered a complete definition; but to me, it is about capturing a memory. You express that memory through the use of art, you connect it to the world around you. Everything we do is a connection to the outer world, we build these images to express a message, a thought, either political or fiction. A portrait has been a statement through art history and history of our civilisation, framing those of importance and those who should be remembered.
QuestionsInterests – distortion, figurative, surreal, the strange
Where do they originate – With an interest in the form and the disjointed features and figures that are often painted, taking this into a more literal form and making them the focal point. I have always had interest in the body, it’s the most exciting piece of art. It’s ever changing, with the slightest variance in viewing angle is such an amazing thing that it modifies the whole viewing of the work. What does becoming an artist mean – Becoming an artist is breaking down the barriers of typical-ness that brands you, I often stick to painting and sculpture but have been experimenting with the materiality of the work and size. Future – Who knows, I have a few ideas, teaching or art therapists, I had previously wanted to go into advertising but my work experience visiting a retired commercial artist slightly altered that, with the boom of technology it loses its traditional sense and to me, its quality. What do you make/how – I make work quickly, fast brushstrokes that are free and fluid. It allows me to experiment more and I am not bound down to finer detail, it may seem like a cop out but the lack of detail is often what inspires me most. What’s missing is the key to interest, you don’t want a piece that explains itself with one look. You as the viewer want to learn to understand the whole by decoding and translating the work onto yourself. Themes – The body, mark making, figurative, expression. Artists under 40 – Luca Sara Roza, Cecily Brown, Katy Moran, Jesus Leguizamo, Varda Caivano |
Artists StatementSeeing the human figure in a new way, in a contemporary figurative manor combined with an abstract expressionists view to explore the boundaries of distortion and form.
AboutI am a 21 Year old Fine Art student studying in
Surrey with a love for all things creative. I have previously completed a year of Illustration but developed my work into a more painterly, and three-dimensional style. Ranging from abstract, charcoal, portraiture, photography, print, sculpture and hand made cards, I am always painting and designing something new. What space do your ideas come from - Every day images, the people around me, who I see who I encounter. Those close to me, who I share space with.
Material – Working on canvas, paints, clay Who is the audience – Everyone is part of the audience in some way, from peers to crits to passers-by who see my work. I am my own audience, critique and artist. Engagment to the artworld- The general value of arts and culture to society has long been assumed, while the specifics have just as long been debated. Try to imagine society without the humanising influence of the arts, and you will have to strip out most of what is pleasurable in life, as well as much that is educationally critical and socially essential. When we talk about the value of arts and culture, we should always start with the intrinsic – how arts and culture illuminate our inner lives and enrich our emotional world. This is what we cherish. But while we do not cherish arts and culture because of the impact on our social wellbeing and cohesion, our physical and mental health, our education system, our national status and our economy, they do confer these benefits and we need to show how important this is. |